Britain reports 10,000 new Omicron cases

Britain has reported more than 10,000 new Omicron coronavirus cases as the new variant-related death toll rose to seven.

The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), confirmed an additional 10,059 cases of the new variant, taking the total number detected to 24,968.

According to official figures released, “The country registered 90,418 coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, the second time cases have been higher than 90,000, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 11,279,428.

“The total number of coronavirus-related deaths in Britain now stands at 147,173, with 7,611 COVID-19 patients still in hospital.”

The latest figures came as London mayor, Sadiq Khan, declared a major incident in the British capital following a huge surge in COVID-19 cases fuelled by the fast-spreading Omicron coronavirus variant.

A major incident enables different public agencies to cooperate and coordinate more closely, but also acts as a warning that emergency services and hospitals are unable to guarantee their normal level of response due to unusual circumstances.

Khan said in the past 24 hours London had logged more than 26,000 new infections, the largest number since the coronavirus pandemic began.

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Kamila/Xinhua